Device for performing wireless charging and method thereof

ABSTRACT

An electronic device is disclosed. The disclosed electronic device includes a display, a charging circuit that transmits and receives power to and from an external electronic device, a sensor circuit that senses a spatial relationship of the electronic device with the external electronic device, a processor that is electrically connected with the display, the charging circuit, and the sensor circuit. When wirelessly transmitting or receiving power to or from the external electronic device using the charging circuit, the processor may transmit and receive information associated with the wireless transmission or reception of power and display the information based on the spatial relationship.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is a Continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No.15/800,278 filed on Nov. 1, 2017 which under 35 U.S.C. § 119(a) from aKorean patent application filed on Nov. 1, 2016 in the KoreanIntellectual Property Office and assigned Serial number 10-2016-0144535,the entire disclosure of which is hereby incorporated by reference.

TECHNICAL FIELD

The present disclosure generally relates to an electronic device and amethod for performing wireless charging.

BACKGROUND

With the development of various information communication technologies,mobile electronic device have been increasingly deployed. Theseelectronic devices receive and transmit data to and from other externalelectronic devices through communication networks, thus providing theuser with mobile data communication services.

Under the recent trend of the digital convergence, various types ofmobile devices have been developed. For example, one type of devicecalled the smartphone supports various functions such as connecting tothe Internet, voice calling, health monitoring, media playback, imageand video capture via a camera, etc.

Due to this multitude of functions, smartphones are generally usuallycarried by the user and are often used throughout the day. For thisreason, the battery life of the electronic device becomes an importantissue. When the user is concerned that battery power may be depletedwhile the user is mobile, he or she may carry a charging device such asa portable charger along with the electronic device. This may beinconvenient to the user.

SUMMARY

Various embodiments of the present disclosure provide an electronicdevice and a method for performing wireless charging. In detail, theelectronic device may transmit and receive power to and from anotherexternal electronic device. To transmit and receive the power, chargingcoils that are respectively provided in the electronic device and theexternal electronic device. To transmit power, the charging coils arealigned with each other.

The charging coil may be arranged adjacent to a rear surface of eachelectronic device for efficiency. When transmitting power, the rearsurfaces of the electronic device and external electronic device mayface each other. Accordingly, when transmitting power, the displays ofthe electronic device and the external electronic device face oppositedirections. Thus, when the electronic device and the external electronicdevice are exchanging power and are placed on a surface such as a table,the user may not be able to see the display of the electronic device ifthe electronic device is placed under external electronic device. Thismay make it difficult for the user to verify that the electronic deviceis charging. Accordingly, an advantage of the present disclosure isallowing the user to easily view information related to the wirelesscharging.

An electronic device according to one embodiment may include a display,a charging circuit that transmits and receives power to and from anexternal electronic device, a sensor circuit that senses a spatialrelationship of the electronic device with the external electronicdevice, a processor that is electrically connected with the display, thecharging circuit, and the sensor circuit. When wirelessly transmittingor receiving power to or from the external electronic device using thecharging circuit, the processor may transmit and receive informationassociated with the wireless transmission or reception of power anddisplay the information based on the spatial relationship.

In the electronic device according to one embodiment, the informationmay include at least one of a battery level of the electronic device, anamount of power consumed by the electronic device, a temperature of theelectronic device, when the wireless transmission or reception of powerstarted, an estimated time for completing the wireless transmission orreception of power, a charging current of the electronic device, andtime elapsed since a start of the wireless transmission or reception ofpower.

In the electronic device according to one embodiment, the displayedinformation may include information generated by the electronic deviceand information received from the external electronic device.

In the electronic device according to one embodiment, a first frequencyused to wirelessly transmit or receive power is different from a secondfrequency used to transmit and receive the information.

In the electronic device according to one embodiment, the processor maynot display the information if, based on the spatial relationship, theprocessor determines that the display is obscured from a user.

In the electronic device according to one embodiment, if the electronicdevice transmits power to the external electronic device, the processormay execute only a pre-defined application.

In the electronic device according to one embodiment, if the electronicdevice transmits power to the external electronic device, the processormay enter a low-power mode to execute only one or more pre-definedfunctions.

In the electronic device according to one embodiment, if the electronicdevice transmits power to the external electronic device, the processormay display, in the display, a first user interface displaying at leastone of a current power capacity of the electronic device, a targetcapacity remaining after the wireless transmission of power iscompleted, a progress indicator, and an estimated time remaining for thewireless transmission of power.

In the electronic device according to one embodiment, if the electronicdevice receives power from the external electronic device, the processormay display, in the display, a second user interface displaying at leastone of a current power capacity of the external electronic device, atarget capacity remaining after the wireless transmission of power iscompleted, and an estimated time remaining for the wireless transmissionof power.

In the electronic device according to one embodiment, the processor mayadjust the target capacity based on an input from a user.

A control method of an electronic device including a display accordingto one embodiment may include wirelessly transmitting or receiving powerto or from an external electronic device, sensing a spatial relationshipof the electronic device with the external electronic device,transmitting and receiving information associated with the wirelesstransmission or reception of power, and displaying the information basedon the spatial relationship.

In the control method of the electronic device including the displayaccording to one embodiment, the information may include at least one ofa battery level of the electronic device, an amount of power consumed bythe electronic device, a temperature of the electronic device, when thewireless transmission or reception of power started, an estimated timefor completing the wireless transmission or reception of power, acharging current of the electronic device, and time elapsed since astart of the wireless transmission or reception of power.

In the control method of the electronic device including the displayaccording to one embodiment, the displayed information may includeinformation generated by the electronic device and information receivedfrom the external electronic device.

In the control method of the electronic device including the displayaccording to one embodiment, the method may include not displaying theinformation if, based on the spatial relationship, the display isdetermined to be obscured from a user.

In the control method of the electronic device including the displayaccording to one embodiment, if the electronic device transmits power tothe external electronic device, the method may include executing only apre-defined application.

In the control method of the electronic device including the displayaccording to one embodiment, if the electronic device transmits power tothe external electronic device, the method may include entering alow-power mode to execute only one or more pre-defined functions.

In the control method of the electronic device including the displayaccording to one embodiment, if the electronic device transmits power tothe external electronic device, the method may include displaying, inthe display, a first user interface displaying at least one of a currentpower capacity of the electronic device, a target capacity remainingafter the wireless transmission of power is completed, a progressindicator, and an estimated time remaining for the wireless transmissionof power.

In the control method of the electronic device including the displayaccording to one embodiment, if the electronic device receives powerfrom the external electronic device, the method may include displaying,in the display, a second user interface displaying at least one of acurrent power capacity of the external electronic device, a targetcapacity remaining after the wireless transmission of power iscompleted, and an estimated time remaining for the wireless transmissionof power.

In the control method of the electronic device including the displayaccording to one embodiment, the method may include adjusting the targetcapacity based on an input from a user.

According to one embodiment, a recording medium may stores instructionsfor an electronic device including a display, where the instructions,when executed by a processor of the electronic device, performs theoperations of wirelessly transmitting or receiving power to or from anexternal electronic device, sensing a spatial relationship of theelectronic device with the external electronic device, transmitting andreceiving information associated with the wireless transmission orreception of power, and displaying the information based on the spatialrelationship.

An electronic device and a control method according to one or moreembodiments of the present disclosure may display information associatedwith wireless charging of external electronic device when the display ofthe external electronic device is not viewable by the user because it isobscured by a surface such as a table or the like, during when wirelesspower is transmitted between the electronic device and the externalelectronic device.

Other aspects, advantages, and salient features of the disclosure willbecome apparent to those skilled in the art from the following detaileddescription, which, taken in conjunction with the annexed drawings,discloses various embodiments of the present disclosure.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The above and other aspects, features, and advantages of certainembodiments of the present disclosure will be more apparent from thefollowing description taken in conjunction with the accompanyingdrawings, in which:

FIG. 1 is a block diagram of an electronic device in a networkenvironment according to one embodiment;

FIG. 2 is a block diagram of an electronic device according to oneembodiment;

FIG. 3 is a block diagram of a program module according to oneembodiment;

FIG. 4A and FIG. 4B are perspective views illustrating a firstelectronic device and a second electronic device that perform wirelesscharging according to one embodiment;

FIG. 5 is a block diagram of a first electronic device and a secondelectronic device according to one embodiment;

FIG. 6 is a flowchart illustrating a method for displaying informationassociated with wireless charging when a first electronic deviceaccording to one embodiment transmits power via wireless charging;

FIG. 7 is a flowchart illustrating a method for displaying informationassociated with wireless charging when a second electronic deviceaccording to one embodiment receives power via wireless charging;

FIG. 8A, FIG. 8B and FIG. 8C are views illustrating various userinterfaces when a first electronic device according to one embodimentactivates wireless charging;

FIG. 9A and FIG. 9B are views illustrating various user interfacesshowing wireless charging progress in a notification window when a firstelectronic device according to one embodiment performs wireless chargingto a second electronic device;

FIG. 10A and FIG. 10B are views illustrating various user interfacesafter receiving a user input selecting a second notification window in asecond electronic device according to one embodiment.

FIG. 11A and FIG. 11B are views illustrating user interfaces fordisplaying wireless charging progress in an always on display (AOD),such as when a first electronic device and a second electronic deviceaccording to one embodiment are powered off or have entered a low-powermode;

FIG. 12A and FIG. 12B are perspective views illustrating positionalchanges of a first electronic device and a second electronic deviceaccording to an embodiment;

FIG. 13 is a perspective view illustrating a first electronic device, asecond electronic device, and a third electronic device performingwireless charging, according to one embodiment; and

FIG. 14A and FIG. 14B are views illustrating a case where wirelesscharging is stopped in a first electronic device and a second electronicdevice according to one embodiment.

Throughout the drawings, it should be noted that like reference numbersare used to depict the same or similar elements, features, andstructures.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Hereinafter, various embodiments of the present disclosure may bedescribed with reference to accompanying drawings. Accordingly, those ofordinary skill in the art will recognize that modification, equivalent,and/or alternative on the various embodiments described herein can bemade without departing from the scope and spirit of the presentdisclosure. With regard to description of drawings, similar elements maybe marked by similar reference numerals. Singular forms of terms mayinclude corresponding plural forms unless otherwise specified. In thisdisclosure, the expressions “A or B,” “at least one of A or/and B,” or“one or more of A or/and B,” and the like may include any and allcombinations of one or more of the associated listed items. Terms suchas “first,” “second,” and the like may be used to refer to variouselements regardless of the order and/or the priority and to distinguishthe relevant elements from other elements, but do not limit theelements. When an element (e.g., a first element) is referred to asbeing “(operatively or communicatively) coupled with/to” or “connectedto” another element (e.g., a second element), the element may bedirectly coupled with/to or connected to the other element or anintervening element (e.g., a third element) may be present.

According to the situation, the expression “configured to” used in thisdisclosure may be used as, for example, the expression “suitable for,”“having the capacity to,” “adapted to,” “made to,” “capable of,” or“designed to” in hardware or software. The expression “a deviceconfigured to” may mean that the device is “capable of” operatingtogether with another device or other components. For example, a“processor configured to (or set to) perform A, B, and C” may mean adedicated processor (e.g., an embedded processor) for performing therecited operations or a generic-purpose processor (e.g., a centralprocessing unit (CPU) or an application processor) which performs theoperations by executing one or more software programs which are storedin a memory device.

An electronic device according to various embodiments of this disclosuremay be, for example, smartphones, tablet personal computers (PCs),mobile phones, video telephones, electronic book readers, desktop PCs,laptop PCs, netbook computers, personal digital assistants (PDAs),portable multimedia players (PMI's), Motion Picture Experts Group(MPEG-1 or MPEG-2) Audio Layer 3 (MP3) players, medical devices,cameras, or wearable devices. According to various embodiments, thewearable device may be an accessory (e.g., watches, rings, bracelets,anklets, necklaces, glasses, contact lens, or head-mounted-devices(HMDs), a fabric or garment-integrated device (e.g., an electronicapparel), a body-attached device (e.g., a skin pad or tattoos), or abio-implantable device (e.g., an implantable circuit). According tovarious embodiments, the electronic device may be, for example,televisions (TVs), digital versatile disc (DVD) players, audios,refrigerators, air conditioners, cleaners, ovens, microwave ovens,washing machines, air cleaners, set-top boxes, home automation controlpanels, security control panels, media boxes (e.g., Samsung HomeSync™,Apple TV™, or Google TV™), game consoles (e.g., Xbox™ or PlayStation™),electronic dictionaries, electronic keys, camcorders, electronic pictureframes, and the like.

According to other embodiments, the electronic device may be variousmedical devices (e.g., various portable medical measurement devices(e.g., blood glucose monitoring devices, heartbeat measuring devices,blood pressure measuring devices, body temperature measuring devices,and the like), magnetic resonance angiography (MRA) devices, magneticresonance imaging (MRI) devices, computed tomography (CT) devices,scanners, and ultrasonic devices), navigation devices, Global NavigationSatellite Systems (GNSS), event data recorders (EDRs), flight datarecorders (FDRs), vehicle infotainment devices, electronic equipment forvessels (e.g., navigation systems and gyrocompasses), avionics, securitydevices, head units for vehicles, industrial or home robots, drones,automatic teller's machines (ATMs), points of sale systems (POSs), orInternet of Things devices (e.g., light bulbs, various sensors,sprinkler devices, fire alarms, thermostats, street lamps, toasters,exercise equipment, hot water tanks, heaters, boilers, and the like).According to an embodiment, the electronic device may include at leastone of parts of furniture or buildings/structures, electronic boards,electronic signature receiving devices, projectors, or various measuringinstruments (e.g., water meters, electricity meters, gas meters, or wavemeters, and the like). According to various embodiments, the electronicdevice may be a flexible electronic device or a combination of two ormore above-described devices. Furthermore, an electronic deviceaccording to an embodiment of this disclosure may not be limited to theabove-described electronic devices. In this disclosure, the term “user”may refer to a person who uses an electronic device or may refer to adevice (e.g., an artificial intelligence electronic device) that usesthe electronic device.

Referring to FIG. 1, according to one embodiment, an electronic device101 in a network environment is described. The electronic device 101 mayinclude a bus 110, a processor 120, a memory 130, an input/outputinterface 150, a display 160, and a communication interface 170.According to an embodiment, the electronic device 101 may not include atleast one of the above-described elements or may further include otherelement(s). The bus 110 may interconnect the above-described elements110 to 170 and may include a circuit for conveying communications (e.g.,a control message and/or data) among the above-described elements. Theprocessor 120 may include one or more of a central processing unit(CPU), an application processor (AP), or a communication processor (CP).For example, the processor 120 may perform an arithmetic operation ordata processing associated with control and/or communication of at leastother elements of the electronic device 101. The processor 120 mayinclude a microprocessor or any suitable type of processing circuitry,such as one or more general-purpose processors (e.g., ARM-basedprocessors), a Digital Signal Processor (DSP), a Programmable LogicDevice (PLD), an Application-Specific Integrated Circuit (ASIC), aField-Programmable Gate Array (FPGA), a Graphical Processing Unit (GPU),a video card controller, etc. In addition, it would be recognized thatwhen a general purpose computer accesses code for implementing theprocessing shown herein, the execution of the code transforms thegeneral purpose computer into a special purpose computer for executingthe processing shown herein. Certain of the functions and steps providedin the Figures may be implemented in hardware, software or a combinationof both and may be performed in whole or in part within the programmedinstructions of a computer. No claim element herein is to be construedunder the provisions of 35 U.S.C. 112, sixth paragraph, unless theelement is expressly recited using the phrase “means for.” In addition,an artisan understands and appreciates that a “processor” or“microprocessor” may be hardware in the claimed disclosure. Under thebroadest reasonable interpretation, the appended claims are statutorysubject matter in compliance with 35 U.S.C. § 101.

The memory 130 may include a volatile and/or nonvolatile memory. Forexample, the memory 130 may store instructions or data associated withat least one other element(s) of the electronic device 101. According toan embodiment, the memory 130 may store software and/or a program 140.The program 140 may include, for example, a kernel 141, a middleware143, an application programming interface (API) 145, and/or anapplication program (or “an application”) 147. At least a part of thekernel 141, the middleware 143, or the API 145 may be referred to as an“operating system (OS)”. For example, the kernel 141 may control ormanage system resources (e.g., the bus 110, the processor 120, thememory 130, and the like) that are used to execute operations orfunctions of other programs (e.g., the middleware 143, the API 145, andthe application program 147). Furthermore, the kernel 141 may provide aninterface that allows the middleware 143, the API 145, or theapplication program 147 to access discrete elements of the electronicdevice 101 so as to control or manage system resources.

The middleware 143 may perform, for example, a mediation role such thatthe API 145 or the application program 147 communicates with the kernel141 to exchange data. Furthermore, the middleware 143 may process one ormore task requests received from the application program 147 accordingto a priority. For example, the middleware 143 may assign the priority,which makes it possible to use system resources (e.g., the bus 110, theprocessor 120, the memory 130, or the like) of the electronic device101, to at least one of the application program 147 and may process theone or more task requests. The API 145 may be an interface through whichthe application program 147 controls a function provided by the kernel141 or the middleware 143, and may include, for example, at least oneinterface or function (e.g., an instruction) for a file control, awindow control, image processing, a character control, or the like. Theinput/output interface 150 may transmit an instruction or data inputfrom a user or another external device, to other element(s) of theelectronic device 101 or may output an instruction or data, receivedfrom other element(s) of the electronic device 101, to a user or anotherexternal device.

The display 160 may be, for example, a liquid crystal display (LCD), alight-emitting diode (LED) display, an organic LED (OLED) display, amicroelectromechanical systems (MEMS) display, or an electronic paperdisplay. The display 160 may display, for example, various contents(e.g., a text, an image, a video, an icon, a symbol, and the like) to auser. The display 160 may include a touch screen and may receive, forexample, a touch, gesture, proximity, or hovering inputs using anelectronic pen or a part of the user's body. The communication interface170 may establish communication between the electronic device 101 and anexternal device (e.g., the first electronic device 102, the secondelectronic device 104, or the server 106). For example, thecommunication interface 170 may be connected to the network 162 overwireless communication or wired communication to communicate with theexternal device (e.g., the second electronic device 104 or the server106).

For example, the wireless communication may include cellularcommunication using at least one of long-term evolution (LTE), LTEAdvanced (LTE-A), Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA), Wideband CDMA(WCDMA), Universal Mobile Telecommunications System (UMTS), WirelessBroadband (WiBro), Global System for Mobile Communications (GSM), or thelike. The wireless communication may include at least one of wirelessfidelity (Wi-Fi), Bluetooth, Bluetooth low energy (BLE), Zigbee, nearfield communication (NFC), magnetic stripe transmission (MST), radiofrequency (RF), a body area network, or the like. According to anembodiment, the wireless communication may include GNSS. The GNSS may beone of, for example, a global positioning system (GPS), a globalnavigation satellite system (Glonass), a Beidou navigation satellitesystem (hereinafter referred to as “Beidou”), or an European globalsatellite-based navigation system (hereinafter referred to as“Galileo”). Hereinafter, in this disclosure, “GPS” and “GNSS” may beinterchangeably used. The wired communication may include at least oneof, for example, a universal serial bus (USB), a high definitionmultimedia interface (HDMI), a recommended standard-232 (RS-232),powerline communication, a plain old telephone service (POTS), or thelike. The network 162 may include at least one of telecommunicationsnetworks, for example, a computer network (e.g., LAN or WAN), anInternet, or a telephone network.

Each of the first and second electronic devices 102 and 104 may bedifferent from or the same as that of the electronic device 101.According to various embodiments, all or a portion of operations thatthe electronic device 101 will perform may be executed by anotherelectronic device (e.g., the first electronic device 102, the secondelectronic device 104 or the server 106). According to an embodiment, inthe case where the electronic device 101 executes a function or serviceautomatically or in response to a request, the electronic device 101 maynot perform the function or the service internally, but, alternativelyor additionally, it may request at least a portion of the function orservice be performed by another electronic device (e.g., the electronicdevice 102 or 104 or the server 106). The other electronic device (e.g.,the electronic device 102 or 104 or the server 106) may execute therequested function and may transmit the execution result to theelectronic device 101. The electronic device 101 may provide therequested function or service using the received result or mayadditionally process the received result to provide the requestedfunction or service. To this end, for example, cloud computing,distributed computing, or client-server computing may be used.

FIG. 2 illustrates a block diagram of an electronic device, according toone embodiment. An electronic device 201 may include, for example, allor a part of the electronic device 101 illustrated in FIG. 1. Theelectronic device 201 may include one or more processors (e.g., anapplication processor (AP)) 210, a communication module 220, asubscriber identification module 224, a memory 230, a sensor module 240,an input device 250, a display 260, an interface 270, an audio module280, a camera module 291, a power management module 295, a battery 296,an indicator 297, and a motor 298. For example, the processor 210 may beimplemented with a System on Chip (SoC). According to an embodiment, theprocessor 210 may further include a graphic processing unit (GPU) and/oran image signal processor. The processor 210 may include at least a part(e.g., a cellular module 221) of elements illustrated in FIG. 2. Theprocessor 210 may load an instruction or data, which is received from atleast one of other elements (e.g., a nonvolatile memory), into avolatile memory and process the loaded instruction or data. Theprocessor 210 may store result data in the nonvolatile memory.

The communication module 220 may be configured the same as or similar tothe communication interface 170 of FIG. 1. The communication module 220may include a cellular module 221, a Wi-Fi module 223, a Bluetooth (BT)module 225, a GNSS module 227, a near field communication (NFC) module228, and a radio frequency (RF) module 229. The cellular module 221 mayprovide, for example, voice communication, video communication, Internetservice, or the like over a communication network. According to anembodiment, the cellular module 221 may perform discrimination andauthentication of the electronic device 201 within a communicationnetwork by using the subscriber identification module (e.g., a SIM card)224. According to an embodiment, the cellular module 221 may perform atleast a portion of functions that the processor 210 provides. Accordingto an embodiment, the cellular module 221 may include a communicationprocessor (CP). According to an embodiment, at least a part (e.g., twoor more) of the cellular module 221, the Wi-Fi module 223, the BT module225, the GNSS module 227, or the NFC module 228 may be included withinone Integrated Circuit (IC) or an IC package. For example, the RF module229 may transmit and receive communication signals (e.g., RF signals).For example, the RF module 229 may include a transceiver, a poweramplifier module (PAM), a frequency filter, a low noise amplifier (LNA),an antenna, or the like. According to another embodiment, at least oneof the cellular module 221, the Wi-Fi module 223, the BT module 225, theGNSS module 227, or the NFC module 228 may transmit and receive RFsignals through a separate RF module. The subscriber identificationmodule 224 may include, for example, a card and/or an embedded SIM thatincludes the subscriber identification module and may include uniqueidentify information (e.g., integrated circuit card identifier (ICCID))or subscriber information (e.g., international mobile subscriberidentity (IMSI)).

The memory 230 (e.g., the memory 130) may include an internal memory 232or an external memory 234. For example, the internal memory 232 mayinclude at least one of a volatile memory (e.g., a dynamic random accessmemory (DRAM), a static RAM (SRAM), a synchronous DRAM (SDRAM), or thelike), a nonvolatile memory (e.g., a one-time programmable read onlymemory (OTPROM), a programmable ROM (PROM), an erasable and programmableROM (EPROM), an electrically erasable and programmable ROM (EEPROM), amask ROM, a flash ROM, a flash memory, a hard drive, or a solid statedrive (SSD). The external memory 234 may include a flash drive such ascompact flash (CF), secure digital (SD), micro secure digital(Micro-SD), mini secure digital (Mini-SD), extreme digital (xD), amultimedia card (MMC), a memory stick, or the like. The external memory234 may be operatively and/or physically connected to the electronicdevice 201 through various interfaces.

The sensor module 240 may measure, for example, a physical quantity ormay detect an operation state of the electronic device 201. The sensormodule 240 may convert the measured or detected information to anelectric signal. For example, the sensor module 240 may include at leastone of a gesture sensor 240A, a gyro sensor 240B, a barometric pressuresensor 240C, a magnetic sensor 240D, an acceleration sensor 240E, a gripsensor 240F, the proximity sensor 240G, a color sensor 240H (e.g., red,green, blue (RGB) sensor), a biometric sensor 240I, atemperature/humidity sensor 240J, an illuminance sensor 240K, or an UVsensor 240M. Although not illustrated, the sensor module 240 may furtherinclude, for example, an E-nose sensor, an electromyography (EMG)sensor, an electroencephalogram (EEG) sensor, an electrocardiogram (ECG)sensor, an infrared (IR) sensor, an iris sensor, and/or a fingerprintsensor. The sensor module 240 may further include a control circuit forcontrolling at least one or more sensors included therein. According toan embodiment, the electronic device 201 may further include a processorthat is a part of the processor 210 or independent of the processor 210and is configured to control the sensor module 240. The processor maycontrol the sensor module 240 while the processor 210 remains at a sleepstate.

The input device 250 may include, for example, a touch panel 252, a(digital) pen sensor 254, a key 256, or an ultrasonic input unit 258.For example, the touch panel 252 may use capacitive, resistive, infraredand/or ultrasonic detecting methods. Also, the touch panel 252 mayfurther include a control circuit. The touch panel 252 may furtherinclude a tactile layer to provide tactile feedback to the user. The(digital) pen sensor 254 may be, for example, a part of a touch panel ormay include an additional sheet for recognition. The key 256 mayinclude, for example, a physical button, an optical key, or a keypad.The ultrasonic input device 258 may detect (or sense) an ultrasonicsignal, which is generated from an input device, through a microphone(e.g., a microphone 288) and may check data corresponding to thedetected ultrasonic signal.

The display 260 (e.g., the display 160) may include a panel 262, ahologram device 264, a projector 266, and/or a control circuit forcontrolling the panel 262, the hologram device 264, or the projector266. The panel 262 may be implemented, for example, to be flexible,transparent or wearable. The panel 262 and the touch panel 252 may beintegrated into a single module. According to an embodiment, the panel262 may include a pressure sensor (or force sensor) that measures theintensity of touch pressure by a user. The pressure sensor may beimplemented integrally with the touch panel 252, or may be implementedas at least one sensor separately from the touch panel 252. The hologramdevice 264 may display a stereoscopic image into space using lightinterference. The projector 266 may project light onto a screen so as todisplay an image. For example, the screen may be arranged to be withinor outside the electronic device 201. The interface 270 may be, forexample, a high-definition multimedia interface (HDMI) 272, a universalserial bus (USB) 274, an optical interface 276, or a D-subminiature(D-sub) 278. The interface 270 may be included, for example, in thecommunication interface 170 illustrated in FIG. 1. Additionally, theinterface 270 may further include, for example, a mobile high definitionlink (MHL) interface, a SD card/multi-media card (MMC) interface, or aninfrared data association (IrDA) standard interface.

The audio module 280 may convert sounds to electrical signals or viceversa. At least a part of the audio module 280 may be included, forexample, in the input/output interface 150 illustrated in FIG. 1. Theaudio module 280 may process, for example, sound information that isinput or output through a speaker 282, a receiver 284, an earphone 286,or the microphone 288. For example, the camera module 291 may shoot astill image or a video. According to an embodiment, the camera module291 may include image sensors (e.g., a front sensor or a rear sensor),lenses, one or more image signal processors (ISP), and/or a flash (e.g.,an LED or a xenon lamp). The power management module 295 may manage, forexample, the power of the electronic device 201. According to anembodiment, a power management integrated circuit (PMIC), a charger IC,or a battery or fuel gauge may be included in the power managementmodule 295. The PMIC may employ wired or wireless charging methods. Thewireless charging method may employ, for example, magnetic resonancecharging, magnetic induction charging or electromagnetic charging. ThePMIC may further include additional circuits such as coil loops,resonant circuits, rectifiers, or the like. The battery gauge maymeasure, for example, the remaining capacity of the battery 296 and thevoltage, current or temperature thereof while the battery is charged.The battery 296 may be, for example, a rechargeable battery and/or asolar battery.

The indicator 297 may display a specific state of the electronic device201 or a part thereof (e.g., the processor 210), such as states when theelectronic device 201 is booting, transmitting/receiving a message,charging, etc. The motor 298 may convert an electrical signal into amechanical vibration and may generate vibration, haptic feedback, etc.The electronic device 201 may include a processing device (e.g., a GPU)for supporting a mobile TV. The processing device for supporting themobile TV may process media data according to the standards of digitalmultimedia broadcasting (DMB), digital video broadcasting (DVB),MediaFLO™, or the like. Each of the above-mentioned elements of theelectronic device according to various embodiments of the presentdisclosure may be configured with one or more components, and the namesof the elements may be changed according to the type of the electronicdevice. In various embodiments, some elements of the electronic device(e.g., the electronic device 201) may be omitted or other additionalelements may be added. Furthermore, some of the elements of theelectronic device may be combined with each other so as to form oneentity, so that the functions of the elements may be performed in thesame manner as before the combination.

FIG. 3 illustrates a block diagram of a program module, according to oneembodiment. According to an embodiment, a program module 310 (e.g., theprogram 140) may include an operating system (OS) to control resourcesassociated with the corresponding electronic device (e.g., theelectronic device 101), and/or applications (e.g., the applicationprogram 147) executing on top of the OS. The OS may be, for example,Android™, iOS™Windows™, Symbian™, Tizen™, or Bada™. The program module310 may include a kernel 320 (e.g., the kernel 141), a middleware 330(e.g., the middleware 143), an application programming interface (API)360 (e.g., the API 145), and/or an application 370 (e.g., theapplication program 147). At least a portion of the program module 310may be preloaded on an electronic device or may be downloadable from anexternal electronic device (e.g., the first electronic device 102, thesecond electronic device 104, the server 106, or the like).

The kernel 320 (e.g., the kernel 141) may include, for example, a systemresource manager 321 or a device driver 323. The system resource manager321 may control, allocate, or retrieve system resources. According to anembodiment, the system resource manager 321 may include a processmanaging unit, a memory managing unit, a file system managing unit, orthe like. The device driver 323 may include, for example, a displaydriver, a camera driver, a Bluetooth driver, a shared memory driver, aUSB driver, a keypad driver, a Wi-Fi driver, an audio driver, or aninter-process communication (IPC) driver. The middleware 330 mayprovide, for example, a function that the application 370 needs incommon, or may provide various functions to the application 370 throughthe API 360 to allow the application 370 to efficiently use limitedsystem resources of the electronic device. According to an embodiment,the middleware 330 may include at least one of a runtime library 335, anapplication manager 341, a window manager 342, a multimedia manager 343,a resource manager 344, a power manager 345, a database manager 346, apackage manager 347, a connectivity manager 348, a notification manager349, a position manager 350, a graphic manager 351, or a securitymanager 352.

The runtime library 335 may include, for example, a library module thatis used by a compiler to generate new functions while the application370 is being executed. The runtime library 335 may perform input/outputmanagement, memory management, or arithmetic functions. The applicationmanager 341 may manage, for example, life cycles of the application 370.The window manager 342 may manage the graphic user interface (GUI)resource that is used in the display. The multimedia manager 343 mayidentify formats necessary for playing back various media files, and mayperform encoding or decoding of the media files by using codecs suitablefor the formats. The resource manager 344 may manage resources such asmemory space or source code of the application 370. The power manager345 may manage power (e.g. battery power), and may provide powerinformation for an operation of an electronic device. According to anembodiment, the power manager 345 may operate with a basic input/outputsystem (BIOS). The database manager 346 may generate, search for, ormodify database that is to be used in the application 370. The packagemanager 347 may install or update the application that is distributed inthe package file.

The connectivity manager 348 may manage, for example, wirelessconnections. The notification manager 349 may provide an event, forexample, for a received message, for an appointment, or for a proximitynotification to the user. For example, the position manager 350 maymanage position information about the electronic device. The graphicmanager 351 may manage graphic effects that are provided to the user, ormanage the user interface relevant thereto. The security manager 352 mayprovide, for example, system security or user authentication. Accordingto an embodiment, the middleware 330 may include a telephony manager formanaging voice or video call functions. According to an embodiment, themiddleware 330 may provide a module specialized for each OS.Additionally, the middleware 330 may dynamically remove a part ofexisting elements or may add new elements thereto. The API 360 may be,for example, a set of programming functions and may vary depending onthe OS. For example, in the case where the OS is Android, it may provideone API set suitable for the Android OS. In the case where the OS is theTizen OS, it may provide two or more API sets.

The application(s) 370 may include, for example, one or moreapplications such as the home screen 371, the dialer 372, the SMS/MMSapplication 373, the instant message (IM) application 374, the browser375, the camera 376, the alarm 377, the contacts 378, the voice dial379, the e-mail application 380, the calendar 381, the media player 382,the album application 383, the clock application 384, health careapplications (e.g., measuring exercise quantity undertaken by the user,blood sugar, or the like) or environment information applications (e.g.,measuring barometric pressure, humidity, temperature, or the like).According to an embodiment, the application 370 may include aninformation exchanging application to support information exchangebetween an electronic device and an external electronic device. Theinformation exchanging application may include, for example, anotification relay application for transmitting specific information toan external electronic device, or a device management application formanaging the external electronic device. For example, the notificationrelay application may perform the function of transmitting notificationinformation, which arise from other applications, to an externalelectronic device or may receive, for example, notification informationfrom an external electronic device and provide the notificationinformation to the user. The device management application may manage(e.g. install, delete, or update), for example, a function (e.g.,turn-on/turn-off of a portion or all of the external electronic deviceitself, adjust the brightness or resolution of the display, etc.) of theexternal electronic device, an application running in the externalelectronic device, or a service (e.g., call service, message service, orthe like) provided by the external electronic device. According to anembodiment, the application 370 may include an application (e.g., ahealth care application of a mobile medical device) that is assigned inaccordance with an attribute of an external electronic device. Accordingto an embodiment, the application 370 may include an application that isreceived from an external electronic device. At least a portion of theprogram module 310 may be implemented by software, firmware, hardware(e.g., the processor 210), or a combination (e.g., execution) of two ormore thereof, and may include modules, programs, routines, sets ofinstructions, processes, or the like for performing one or morefunctions.

FIGS. 4A and 4B are perspective views illustrating a first electronicdevice and a second electronic device that perform wireless chargingaccording to one embodiment.

Referring to FIGS. 4A and 4B, a first electronic device 410 may performwireless charging with a second electronic device 420. Each of the firstelectronic device 410 and the second electronic device 420 may include acharging coil (not illustrated) for wireless charging. The firstelectronic device 410 and the second electronic device 420 may be, forexample, the electronic device 101 of FIG. 1 or the electronic device201 of FIG. 2.

According to one embodiment, the charging coil may be positioned on therear surfaces of each of the first electronic device 410 and the secondelectronic device 420. The front surfaces of each of the first andsecond electronic devices 410 and 420 may be where their displays arepositioned, and the rear surfaces may be surfaces opposite the frontsurfaces. To perform the wireless charging, the rear surface of thefirst electronic device 410 and the rear surface of the secondelectronic device 420 may be placed to face each other. A display 415may be disposed on the front surface of the first electronic device 410,and a display 425 may be disposed on the front surface of the secondelectronic device 420.

Referring to FIG. 4A, assuming that the display 415 of the firstelectronic device 410 is on top and facing the user, the display 425 ofthe second electronic device 420 may be positioned in a direction thatfaces away from the user. Accordingly, in this situation, the contentsdisplays on the display 425 are obscured from the user. For example, thefirst electronic device 410 and the second electronic device 420 may lieon a table or desk (not shown in FIGS. 4A and 4B) for the wirelesscharging. When the first electronic device 410 is on top, the display425 of the second electronic device 420 is obscured by the table.

Referring to FIG. 4B, assuming that the display 425 of the secondelectronic device 420 is on top, the display 415 of the first electronicdevice 410 may be positioned in a direction that faces away from theuser. Thus, as shown in FIGS. 4A and 4B, the display of whicheverelectronic device is on top may be visible. However, the display ofwhichever electronic device is on the bottom may be obscured.

But if the display 415 of the first electronic device 410 and display425 of the second electronic device 420 face the same direction, therear surfaces of the first electronic device 410 and the secondelectronic device 420 do not face each other. It this case, wirelesscharging may not occur, or the efficiency of the wireless charging maynot be good. Accordingly, to ensure proper wireless power transmission,the rear surface of the first electronic device 410 and the rear surfaceof the second electronic device 420 should be disposed to face eachother as illustrated in FIGS. 4A and 4B.

According to one embodiment, the first electronic device 410 maydetermine the direction that its display is facing through a sensorprovided in the first electronic device 410. As such, the firstelectronic device 410 may be able to determine the spatial relationshipbetween the first electronic device 410 and the second electronic device420. For example, using a gyro sensor, the first electronic device 410may determine whether its front surface (i.e. the surface containing thedisplay 415) faces the top side (e.g., a +z direction) or the bottomside opposite to the top side (e.g., a −z direction). The top side maybe, for example, a direction facing a sky, and the bottom side may be,for example, a direction facing a ground.

Alternatively, the first electronic device 410 may determine thedirection that its front surface is facing by using an image sensorprovided on the front surface of the first electronic device 410. Forexample, the first electronic device 410 may determine that its frontsurface is facing the top side when its camera captures an image of theuser or an image of certain brightness. Other embodiments are alsopossible, and the ways for the first electronic device 410 to determinethe direction that its front surface is facing is not limited to theexplicit disclosures above.

According to one embodiment, the wireless charging may be performed whenthe first electronic device 410 and the second electronic device 420contact each other. For example, the first electronic device 410 maytransmit power to the second electronic device 420, or the secondelectronic device 420 may transmit power to the first electronic device410.

The first electronic device 410 and the second electronic device 420 mayexchange information associated with the wireless charging. For thecharging electronic device, the information associated with the wirelesscharging may include, for example, the estimated time for completing thecharging, the battery level of the electronic device, the temperature ofthe electronic device, the charging current, time elapsed whilecharging, etc. For the electronic device supplying power, theinformation associated with the wireless charging may include thebattery level of the electronic device, the amount of power consumed,the temperature of the electronic device, when charging started, whencharging will end, etc.

According to one embodiment, the electronic device on top may output atleast a portion of the charging-related information of the externalelectronic device. In other words, the electronic device on top maydisplay information of the electronic device on the bottom. For example,referring to FIG. 4A, the charging-related information of the firstelectronic device 410 and the charging-related information of the secondelectronic device 420 may be displayed in the display 415 of the firstelectronic device 410, when the display 415 is facing the top side.Alternatively, referring to FIG. 4B, the charging-related information ofthe second electronic device 420 and the charging-related information ofthe first electronic device 410 may be displayed in the display 425 ofthe second electronic device 420, when the display 425 is facing the topside.

Accordingly, the user may verify the charging-related information of thefirst electronic device 410 and the second electronic device 420 easily,even when one of the displays is obscured.

FIG. 5 is a block diagram of a first electronic device and a secondelectronic device, according to one embodiment. A first electronicdevice 510 and a second electronic device 530 may have the sameconfiguration.

Referring to FIG. 5, the first electronic device 510 may include asensor circuit 512, a display circuit 514, a first communication circuit516, a processor 518, and a charging circuit 520. The configuration ofthe first electronic device 510 illustrated in FIG. 5 may be only oneimplementation and may be variously changed or modified. For example,the first electronic device 510 may further include a user interface forreceiving any command or information from the user. The user interfacemay be, in general, an input device such as a keyboard, a mouse, or thelike, but the user interface may also be a graphic user interface (GUI)provided through a display of the first electronic device 510.

The sensor circuit 512 may sense a state of the first electronic device510 and/or a surrounding state of the first electronic device 510 byusing various sensors (e.g., the sensor module 240 of FIG. 2) providedin the first electronic device 510.

The display circuit 514 may provide a variety of contents through thedisplay of the first electronic device 510. The contents may includewidget screens, application execution screens, text, images, videos,icons, symbols, or the like. The display may be, for example, a liquidcrystal display (LCD), a light-emitting diode (LED) display, an organicLED (OLED) display, or the like.

The first communication circuit 516 may communicate with externalnetworks or devices. For example, the first communication circuit 516may receive a message or an incoming call from an external base station.In an embodiment, the first communication circuit 516 may communicatewith a first communication circuit 536 of the second electronic device530. The first communication circuit 516 and the first communicationcircuit 536 of the second electronic device 530 may communicate witheach other through the base station or may perform short rangecommunication with each other without the base station. The short rangecommunication may be via, for example, Bluetooth (BT) communication,Bluetooth low energy (BLE) communication, near-field communication(NFC), wireless fidelity (Wi-Fi) communication, magnetic securetransmission (MST) communication, infrared (IR) communication, radiofrequency (RF) communication, Zigbee communication, or the like.

The processor 518 may be implemented with, for example, a system on chip(SoC) and may include one or more central processing units (CPU), agraphic processing unit (GPU), an image signal processor, an applicationprocessor (AP), or a communication processor (CP). The processor 518 mayload and process commands or data received from at least one of theother elements (e.g., the sensor circuit 512, the display circuit 514,the first communication circuit 516, and the charging circuit 520) orfrom a memory (not illustrated) and may store various data in thememory.

The processor 518 may determine whether the second electronic device 530is nearby, through the sensor circuit 512. For example, the processor518 may determine whether the charging coil 522 of the first electronicdevice 510 and the charging coil 542 of the second electronic device 530are positioned to correspond to each other, i.e. face each other.

The processor 518 may determine whether the second electronic device 530is nearby using in-band communication or out-band communication.

The in-band communication is communication where the first electronicdevice 510 and the second electronic device 530 exchange controlmessages within the frequency range used for wireless powertransmission. The second communication circuit 521 may be used forin-band communication. The second communication circuit 521 may detectthat the two coils 522 and 542 are adjacent to each other when itdetects a change in current induced in the coil 522. The secondcommunication circuit 521 may then perform ping-identification andconfiguration-power transfer operations. In addition, the electronicdevice that receives power may further include a switch that controlsthe reception of the power. Accordingly, the electronic device thattransmits power may detect whether the switch is on or off, by detectingthe amount of power that is consumed in the electronic devicetransmitting power.

The out-band communication is communication where the electronic devicesupplying power and the electronic device receiving the power exchange acontrol message and the like by using a frequency in a range separatefrom the frequency range used for wireless power transmission. Theout-band communication may employ a short range communication protocol(e.g., BT, Wi-Fi, NFC, or the like).

The processor 518 may provide a user interface (UI) querying the userwhether to perform the wireless charging through the display circuit514. In the case where a user input requesting execution of the wirelesscharging is received from the user, the processor 518 may perform thewireless charging with the charging circuit 540 of the second electronicdevice 530 through the charging circuit 520 of the first electronicdevice 510. Alternatively, the user input requesting execution of thewireless charging may be inputted through a physical button provided inthe first electronic device 510.

The charging circuit 520 of the first electronic device 510 may includethe second communication circuit 521, the charging coil 522, a matchingcircuit 523, a rectification circuit 524, an adjustment circuit 525, aswitch circuit 526, and a battery 527. The charging circuit 540 of thesecond electronic device 530 may perform operations corresponding to thecharging circuit 520 of the first electronic device 510.

The first electronic device 510 may correspond to the first electronicdevice 410 illustrated in FIG. 4, and the second electronic device 530may correspond to the second electronic device 420 of FIG. 4. Forexample, the first electronic device 510 may be placed on the secondelectronic device 530 such that a rear surface of the first electronicdevice 510 and a rear surface of the second electronic device 530 faceeach other.

As described above, if the rear surface of the first electronic device510 and the rear surface of the second electronic device 530 face eachother, the charging circuit 520 of the first electronic device 510 andthe charging circuit 540 of the second electronic device 530 may performcharging. For example, the charging may be performed using magneticinduction.

Using magnetic induction, a magnetic field in the charging coil 522 ofthe first electronic device 510 is generated, and the magnetic fieldinduces an electromagnetic field in the charging coil 542 of the secondelectronic device 530. The induced electromagnetic field can then beused to charge the second electronic device 530.

The first electronic device 510 may include a user input circuit. Theuser input circuit may process a user input that is inputted from theuser. The user input may be a touch input using user's finger or astylus (e.g., an electronic pen). Also, the user input may include ahover input, for example, when the first electronic device 510 detectsthe user's finger or the stylus even when the user's finger or thestylus does not directly contact the first electronic device 510. Theuser input circuit may be a touch integrated circuit (IC).

In addition, the user input circuit may distinguish and process variouskinds of touch inputs, including touch taps, touch drags, touchreleases, touch holds (i.e. long presses), drag and drop, etc.

FIG. 6 is a flowchart illustrating a method for displaying informationassociated with wireless charging when a first electronic deviceaccording to one embodiment transmits power via wireless charging.

Referring to operation 610, the first electronic device 510 may activatethe wireless charging function. For example, the user may manipulate anUI provided through the display of the first electronic device or aphysical button to activate the wireless charging function. If thewireless charging function of the first electronic device 510 isactivated and the first electronic device 510 and the second electronicdevice 530 are close to each other, the first electronic device 510 maysupply power to the second electronic device 530.

According to another embodiment, the first electronic device 510 maysearch for the second electronic device 530 using short rangecommunication such as NFC or BT. When the second electronic device 530is detected, the first electronic device 510 may activate wirelesscharging if the user explicitly permits activation of the wirelesscharging function or when the battery level of the first electronicdevice 510 is more than a specific reference level. The first electronicdevice 510 may activate the wireless charging function by receivinginformation about the battery remaining capacity of the secondelectronic device 530 through communication with the second electronicdevice 530 and comparing the battery remaining capacity of the secondelectronic device 530 and the battery remaining capacity of the firstelectronic device 510.

When the wireless charging function is activated in the first electronicdevice 510, to improve the efficiency of wireless charging, somefunctions of the first electronic device 510 may be restricted. Forexample, the first electronic device 510 may stop or change theoperations of some of the currently executing applications, decrease themaximum clock of the processor 518, etc.

Also, during wireless charging, the first electronic device 510 mayenter a low-power mode. For example, in the low-power mode, parts of theprocessor 518 may be deactivated such that the processor 518 isrestricted to only operate the user input circuit to detect user inputs,without determining the location of the user input.

Referring to operation 620, the first electronic device 510 may transmitpower to the second electronic device 530 via wireless charging. Forexample, the first electronic device 510 may transmit power usingmagnetic induction.

Referring to operation 630, the first electronic device 510 may obtainsensor information and may determine its relative position with thesecond electronic device 530. For example, the first electronic device510 may determine whether its front surface is facing the top side orthe bottom side, by using a gyro sensor.

According to another embodiment, the first electronic device 510 maydetermine whether its front surface is facing the top side or the bottomside by using an image sensor provided on the front surface of the firstelectronic device 510. For example, the first electronic device 510 maydetermine that its front surface is facing the top side when its cameracaptures an image of the user or an image of certain brightness.

Also, the first electronic device 510 may determine whether the chargingcoil of the first electronic device 510 and the charging coil of thesecond electronic device 530 are aligned with each other. Through theabove-described process, the first electronic device 510 may determinewhether the first electronic device 510 is placed on the secondelectronic device 530 or under the second electronic device 530.

Referring to operation 640, if the first electronic device 510 is facingthe top side, it may receive information associated with power chargingof the second electronic device 530.

According to one embodiment, the information associated with the powercharging may be transmitted through the first communication circuit 516of the first electronic device 510 and the first communication circuit536 of the second electronic device 530. In another embodiment, theinformation associated with the power charging may be transmitted in thefrequency band used for wireless charging between the first electronicdevice 510 and the second electronic device 530. In this case, theinformation associated with the power charging may be transmittedthrough the second communication circuit 521 of the first electronicdevice 510 and the second communication circuit 541 of the secondelectronic device 530.

The information associated with the power charging may vary depending onwhether the electronic device transmitting the information is supplyingpower or is receiving power. For example, in the case where the firstelectronic device 510 supplies power, the first electronic device 510may transmit, to the second electronic device 530, information about itsbattery level, the power consumed during the wireless charging, itstemperature, the battery level when wireless charging started, thebattery level when wireless charging ends, etc. But when the firstelectronic device 510 is receiving power, it may receive, from thesecond electronic device 530, the estimated time for completing thecharging, the battery level of the second electronic device 530, thetemperature of the second electronic device 530, the charging current,time elapsed while charging, etc.

Referring to operation 650, if the first electronic device 510 is facingthe top side, it may display information associated with power chargingof the first electronic device 510 and the second electronic device 530.The first electronic device 510 may display the information associatedwith the power charging of the first electronic device 510 together withinformation associated with power charging of the second electronicdevice 530. Accordingly, the user does not need to flip the electronicdevices 510 and 530 to verify the states of charge for the devices.

Alternatively, the front surface of the first electronic device 510 mayface the bottom side, and the second electronic device 530 may be placedon the first electronic device 510. In this case, since the display ofthe first electronic device 510 faces the bottom side, the firstelectronic device 510 may not display the information associated withthe power charging in the display. Instead, the display of the secondelectronic device 530 may display the information associated with thepower charging.

FIG. 7 is a flowchart illustrating a method for displaying informationassociated with wireless charging when a second electronic deviceaccording to one embodiment receives power via wireless charging.

Referring to operation 710, the second electronic device 530 may receivepower from the first electronic device 510. According to one embodiment,for the electronic device receiving power, the wireless chargingcircuits may be activated automatically. Accordingly, if the firstelectronic device 510 activates a wireless charging function and thefirst electronic device 510 and the second electronic device 530 areclose to each other, the second electronic device 530 may be suppliedwith power from the first electronic device 510. The user does notmanipulate the second electronic device 530 in order to initiatewireless charging in the second electronic device 530. The firstelectronic device 510 and the second electronic device 530 may transmitand receive power by using the above-described wireless charging methodof magnetic induction.

Referring to operation 720, the second electronic device 530 may receiveinformation about the wireless charging state from the first electronicdevice 510. The first electronic device 510 may transmit, to the secondelectronic device 530, information indicating that the second electronicdevice 530 is being currently supplied with power from an electronicdevice capable of wireless communication. Accordingly, the firstelectronic device 510 and the second electronic device 530 may mutuallyexchange information associated with the wireless charging.

According to various embodiments, the first electronic device 510 andthe second electronic device 530 may mutually exchange informationassociated with the wireless charging through in-band communication orout-band communication.

In-band communication uses the same frequency as the frequency that thefirst electronic device 510 and the second electronic device 530 use forwireless power transmission. The out-band communication uses a separatefrequency from the frequency that the first electronic device 510 andthe second electronic device 530 use for power transmission. Theout-band communication manner may correspond to a short rangecommunication protocol (e.g., BT, Wi-Fi, NFC, or the like).

Referring to operation 730, the second electronic device 530 may obtainsensor information and may determine its relative position with thefirst electronic device 510. For example, the second electronic device530 may determine whether its front surface is facing the top side orthe bottom side, by using a gyro sensor.

According to another embodiment, the second electronic device 530 maydetermine whether its front surface is facing the top side or the bottomside by using an image sensor provided on the front surface of thesecond electronic device 530. For example, the second electronic device530 may determine that its front surface is facing the top side when itscamera captures an image of the user or an image of certain brightness.

Referring to operation 740, if the second electronic device 530 isfacing the top side, it may receive information associated with powercharging of the first electronic device 510.

According to one embodiment, the information associated with the powercharging may be transmitted through the first communication circuit 536of the second electronic device 530 and the first communication circuit516 of the first electronic device 510. In another embodiment, theinformation associated with the power charging may be transmitted in thefrequency band used for wireless charging between the second electronicdevice 530 and the first electronic device 510. In this case, theinformation associated with the power charging may be transmittedthrough the second communication circuit 541 of the second electronicdevice 530 and the second communication circuit 521 of the firstelectronic device 510.

Referring to operation 750, if the second electronic device 530 isfacing the top side, it may display information associated with powercharging of the second electronic device 530 and the first electronicdevice 510. The second electronic device 530 may display the informationassociated with the power charging of the first electronic device 510together with information associated with power charging of the secondelectronic device 530. Accordingly, the user does not need to flip theelectronic devices 510 and 530 to verify the states of charge for thedevices.

Alternatively, the front surface of the second electronic device 530 mayface the bottom side, and the first electronic device 510 may be placedon the second electronic device 530. In this case, since the display ofthe second electronic device 530 faces the bottom side, the secondelectronic device 530 may not display the information associated withthe power charging in the display. Instead, the display of the firstelectronic device 510 may display the information associated with thepower charging.

According to one embodiment, the electronic device supplying power mayrestrict some of its functions based on a target charging factor of theelectronic device receiving the power. The target charging factor mayinclude, for example, a target charging time or a target charging level.That is, it may be possible to restrict some functions of the electronicdevice supplying the power for the purposes of charging the electronicdevice receiving the power to a certain target.

For example, when the first electronic device 510 supplies power to thesecond electronic device 530, the first electronic device 510 mayrestrict some of its functions based on a charging target for the secondelectronic device 530. Restricting the functions of the first electronicdevice 510 may include, for example, preventing low-priorityapplications from executing, decreasing illuminance of the display,restricting notifications, etc.

According to one embodiment, when an electronic device receiving poweris placed on an electronic device supplying the power, the electronicdevice receiving the power may display some of the notificationsgenerated in the electronic device supplying the power. Accordingly, theelectronic device supplying the power is not required to display thenotifications and power consumption by the electronic device supplyingthe power may be reduced.

For example, when the second electronic device 530 is placed on thefirst electronic device 510, and when the first electronic device 510receives a call, the first electronic device 510 may transfer the callreception or the notification related to the call to the secondelectronic device 530 by using wireless communication. Accordingly, theuser may use the wireless charging function efficiently without missingan important call or notification.

FIGS. 8A to 8C are views illustrating various user interfaces when afirst electronic device according to one embodiment activates wirelesscharging.

Referring to FIG. 8A, if wireless charging is activated, the firstelectronic device 510 may display an image 820 to guide the wirelesscharging in the display 810. The user may manipulate an UI providedthrough the display of the first electronic device 510 or a physicalbutton to activate the wireless charging.

According to one embodiment, the image 820 to guide the wirelesscharging may show the arrangement of two electronic devices for wirelesscharging. Referring to FIG. 8A, the guide image 820 may show the twoelectronic devices where their displays are facing opposite directions

If the user selects “PROCEED” 830, the first electronic device 510 maydisplay a screen as illustrated in FIG. 8B.

Referring to FIG. 8B, the first electronic device 510 may display afirst user interface 840 to show a current battery capacity of the firstelectronic device 510 and allow the user to set a battery capacityremaining after transmitting power to the external electronic device.For example, the first user interface 840 may display the currentcapacity 842, a target capacity 844 remaining after transmitting powerto the external electronic device, progress indicator 846, the estimatedtime remaining for charging 848, etc.

The current capacity 842 may represent the current remaining capacity ofthe battery of the first electronic device 510. The target capacity 844may represent the power capacity remaining in the first electronicdevice 510 after the first electronic device 510 supplies power to thesecond electronic device 530. The progress indicator 846 may representthe percentage of the charging that has already occurred. The firstelectronic device 510 may calculate and display the estimated timeremaining 848 based on the current battery capacity 842 and the targetbattery capacity 844.

Referring to FIG. 8C, the user may adjust the target capacity 844. Forexample, the user may drag the target capacity 844 in the firstdirection 851 or the second direction 852 by inputting a drag gesture onthe display 810. If the target capacity 844 is dragged in the firstdirection 851, the first electronic device 510 may decrease the amountof power to be transmitted to the second electronic device 530. But ifthe target capacity 844 is dragged in the second direction 852, thefirst electronic device 510 may increase the amount of power to betransmitted to the second electronic device 530.

In the embodiment described above, when the user selects “start” 860,the first electronic device 510 may start wireless charging.

FIGS. 9A and 9B are views illustrating various user interfaces showingwireless charging progress in a notification window when a firstelectronic device according to one embodiment performs wireless chargingto a second electronic device. A notification window may mean, forexample, a window displaying various notification content produced in anelectronic device. The notification window may be displayed when theuser touches and drags from the upper edge of the display 910/950.

FIG. 9A shows a user interface where wireless charging progress isdisplayed in a notification window of the first electronic device 510when the first electronic device 510 transmits power to the secondelectronic device 530. A first notification window 920 may display thecurrent capacity 921 of a battery of the first electronic device 510 andthe current capacity 923 of the battery of the second electronic device530.

The first notification window 920 may display an icon 925 between thecurrent capacity 921 of the first electronic device 510 and the currentcapacity 923 of the second electronic device 530 to represent thedirection in which wireless charging currently is progressing.

Also, the first notification window 920 may display an estimated time930 when wireless charging may be completed. However, content that thefirst notification window 920 displays is not limited to those shown inFIG. 9A. For example, the first notification window 920 may display thecurrent progress of the charging. Content displayed in the firstnotification window 920 may be changed by the user.

FIG. 9B shows a user interface where wireless charging progress isdisplayed in a notification window of the second electronic device 530when the second electronic device 530 receives power from the firstelectronic device 510. A second notification window 960 may display thecurrent capacity 961 of the battery of the second electronic device 530and the current capacity 963 of the battery of the first electronicdevice 510.

The second notification window 960 may display an icon 965 between thecurrent capacity 961 of the second electronic device 530 and the currentcapacity 963 of the first electronic device 510 to represent thedirection in which wireless charging currently progresses.

Also, the second notification window 960 may display an estimated time970 when wireless charging may be completed. However, content that thesecond notification window 960 displays is not limited to those shown inFIG. 9A. For example, the second notification window 960 may display thecurrent progress of the charging. Like the first notification window920, content displayed in the second notification window 960 may bechanged by the user.

According to one embodiment, if a user input selecting the secondnotification window 960 is received while the above-described secondnotification window 960 is displayed, the second electronic device 530may display another user interface, which is described below. Thisassumes that the front surface of the second electronic device 530 isfacing the top side.

FIGS. 10A and 10B are views illustrating various user interfaces afterreceiving a user input selecting a second notification window at asecond electronic device according to one embodiment.

Referring to FIG. 10A, the second electronic device 530 may display asecond user interface 1020 to show the current battery capacity of thefirst electronic device 510 and the battery capacity remaining aftertransmitting power to the second electronic device 530.

According to one embodiment, the second user interface 1020 may includethe same configuration as the first user interface 840 described in FIG.8B. However, the first user interface 840 may be displayed in thedisplay 810 of the first electronic device 510 before wireless chargingis initiated, and the second user interface 1020 may be displayed in thedisplay 1010 of the second electronic device 530 after the wirelesscharging is initiated. Accordingly, after the initiation of the wirelesscharging, the second electronic device 530 receiving the power maycontrol the first electronic device 510 supplying the power.

Referring to FIG. 10B, the user may adjust the target capacity 1024using the second user interface 1020. For example, the user may drag thetarget capacity 1024 in the first direction 1031 or the second direction1032 by inputting a drag gesture on the display 1010. If the targetcapacity 1024 is dragged in the first direction 1031, the firstelectronic device 510 may decrease the amount of power to be transmittedto the second electronic device 530. But if the target capacity 1024 isdragged in the second direction 1032, the first electronic device 510may increase the amount of power to be transmitted to the secondelectronic device 530. In response to the drag input, the firstelectronic device 510 may store a setting related to a time intervalwhen charging is allowed. Accordingly, the first electronic device 510may stop the wireless charging after elapse of that time interval.

FIGS. 11A and 11B are views illustrating user interfaces for displayingwireless charging progress in an always on display (AOD), such as when afirst electronic device and a second electronic device according to oneembodiment are powered off or have entered a low-power mode. Using theAOD function, a display may display content in at least a partial areaof the display even when the electronic device operates in the low powermode.

FIG. 11A shows a user interface in which the wireless charging progressis displayed on the display 1110 of the first electronic device 510,when the first electronic device 510 transmits power to the secondelectronic device 530. According to one embodiment, the first electronicdevice 510 may display the current capacity 1121 of the battery of thefirst electronic device 510 and the current capacity 1123 of the batteryof the second electronic device 530 in an AOD display.

The first electronic device 510 may display an icon 1125 between thecurrent capacity 1121 of the first electronic device 510 and the currentcapacity 1123 of the second electronic device 530 to represent thedirection in which wireless charging currently progresses. Content thatthe first electronic device 510 displays is not limited to those shownin FIG. 11A. For example, the first electronic device 510 may displaythe current progress of the charging. Content that the first electronicdevice 510 displays in the AOD display 1110 may be changed by the user.

FIG. 11B is a user interface in which the wireless charging progress isdisplayed in the display 1150 of the second electronic device 530, whenthe second electronic device 530 receives power from the firstelectronic device 510. According to one embodiment, the secondelectronic device 530 may display the current capacity 1161 of thebattery of the second electronic device 530 and the current capacity1163 of the battery of the first electronic device 510 in a state wherepower is off.

The second electronic device 530 may display an icon 1165 between thecurrent capacity 1161 of the second electronic device 530 and thecurrent capacity 1163 of the first electronic device 510 to representthe direction in which wireless charging currently progresses. Contentthat the second electronic device 530 displays in the AOD display 1150may be changed by the user.

FIGS. 12A and 12B are perspective views illustrating positional changesof a first electronic device and a second electronic device according toone embodiment.

Referring to FIG. 12A, the first electronic device 510 and the secondelectronic device 530 may transmit and receive power for wirelesscharging when the first electronic device 510 and the second electronicdevice 530 are disposed close to each other and face oppositedirections. Since the display 1210 of the first electronic device 510faces the top side, the first electronic device 510 may displayinformation associated with wireless charging between the firstelectronic device 510 and the second electronic device 530. And sincethe display 1250 of the second electronic device 530 faces the bottomside, the second electronic device 530 may not display information inthe display 1250 or may turn off the display 1250.

According to one embodiment, each of the first electronic device 510 andthe second electronic device 530 may periodically monitor changes intheir positions. Accordingly, whether the first electronic device 510 orthe second electronic device 530 displays charging information dependson whether their positions change.

Referring to FIG. 12B, the first electronic device 510 and the secondelectronic device 530 may be flipped such that the display 1250 of thesecond electronic device 530 may face the top side, and the display 1210of the first electronic device 510 may face the bottom side. The firstelectronic device 510 and the second electronic device 530 mayperiodically detect any position change. When the position changeoccurs, the display 1250 of the second electronic device 530 may displayinformation regarding the wireless charging.

As such, the first electronic device 510 and the second electronicdevice 530 may periodically verify their positional relationship, andthe electronic device having the display that is viewable by the usermay display the information associated with the wireless charging.

FIG. 13 is a perspective view illustrating a first electronic device, asecond electronic device, and a third electronic device performingwireless charging, according to one embodiment.

Referring to FIG. 13, the first electronic device 1310 may be positionedsuch that the rear surface of the first electronic device 1310 faces therear surface of the second electronic device 1320. The description willbe given for FIG. 13 under the assumption that wireless charging isperformed between the first electronic device 1310 and the second andthird electronic devices 1320 and 1330.

Unlike other embodiments, the first electronic device 1310 may includetwo charging coils. In this case, the first electronic device 1310 mayreceive or transmit power through the two charging coils. In addition,the first electronic device 1310 may receive power through one chargingcoil of the two charging coils and may transmit power through the othercharging coil. Therefore, the first electronic device 1310 may include aplurality of at least some of the components of the charging circuit 520shown in FIG. 5.

The first electronic device 1310 may display a user interface showingthe wireless charging progress with the second electronic device 1320and the third electronic device 1330. According to one embodiment, thefirst electronic device 1310 may distinguish a first display area 1314to display information associated with wireless charging of the firstelectronic device 1310, a second display area 1316 to displayinformation associated with wireless charging of the second electronicdevice 1320, and a third display area 1318 to display informationassociated with wireless charging of the third electronic device 1330.

For example, the first display area 1314 may display a current batteryremaining capacity 1321 of the first electronic device 1310. The seconddisplay area 1316 may display a current battery remaining capacity 1322of the second electronic device 1320, and the third display area 1318may display a current battery remaining capacity 1323 of the thirdelectronic device 1330.

The types of information that each of the display areas 1314, 1316, and1318 may display is not limited to those shown in FIG. 13.

FIGS. 14A and 14B are views illustrating a case where wireless chargingis stopped in a first electronic device and a second electronic deviceaccording to one embodiment.

Referring to FIG. 14A, the first electronic device 1410 may bewirelessly charging the second electronic device 1420. As explainedabove, to perform the wireless charging, the rear surface of the firstelectronic device 1410 and the rear surface of the second electronicdevice 1420 may be placed close to each other and face each other. Forexample, the first electronic device 1410 may supply power to the secondelectronic device 1420.

According to one embodiment, the display 1415 of the first electronicdevice 1410 may display information associated with wireless chargingbetween the first electronic device 1410 and the second electronicdevice 1420. In the case where targeted wireless charging is completed,the first electronic device 1410 and the second electronic device 1420may stop wireless charging. However, the wireless charging may be alsostopped before the completion of the targeted wireless charging. Forexample, if the first electronic device 1410 and the second electronicdevice 1420 are separated by a distance that is larger than apre-defined distance, the wireless charging may be stopped.

Referring to FIG. 14B, when the wireless charging of the firstelectronic device 1410 and the second electronic device 1420 is stopped,the first electronic device 1410 or the second electronic device 1420may display a third user interface 1430 indicating that the wirelesscharging is stopped. The third user interface 1430 may sequentially orsimultaneously display, for example, the amount of power that the secondelectronic device 1420 has received or the current battery capacity ofthe second electronic device 1420. Accordingly, the user may use thisinformation to decide whether to resume the wireless charging or to stopthe wireless charging.

According to one embodiment, if the wireless charging is stopped asdescribed above, the first electronic device 1410 and the secondelectronic device 1420 may delete the exchanged information related tothe wireless charging.

The term “module” used in this disclosure may include a unit composed ofhardware, software and firmware and may be interchangeably used with theterms “unit,” “logic,” “logical block,” “component,” or “circuit.” The“module” may be implemented mechanically or electronically and mayinclude at least one of an application-specific IC (ASIC) chip, afield-programmable gate array (FPGA), and a programmable-logic devicefor performing some operations, which are known or will be developed. Atleast a part of an apparatus (e.g., modules or functions thereof) or amethod (e.g., operations) according to various embodiments may be, forexample, implemented by instructions stored in computer-readable storagemedia (e.g., the memory 130) in the form of a program module. Theinstruction, when executed by a processor (e.g., the processor 120), maycause the processor to perform a function corresponding to theinstruction. A computer-readable recording medium may include a harddisk, a floppy disk, a magnetic media (e.g., a magnetic tape), anoptical media (e.g., a compact disc read only memory (CD-ROM) and adigital versatile disc (DVD), a magneto-optical media (e.g., a flopticaldisk)), and an internal memory. Also, a program instruction may includenot only mechanical code such as those generated by a compiler but alsohigh-level language code executable on a computer using an interpreter.A module or a program module according to various embodiments mayinclude at least one of the above elements, or a part of the aboveelements may be omitted, or other elements may be further included.Operations performed by a module, a program module, or other elementsaccording to various embodiments may be executed sequentially, inparallel, repeatedly, or in a heuristic method or some operations may beexecuted in different sequences or may be omitted. Alternatively, otheroperations may be added.

While the present disclosure has been shown and described with referenceto various embodiments thereof, it will be understood by those skilledin the art that various changes in form and details may be made thereinwithout departing from the spirit and scope of the present disclosure asdefined by the appended claims and their equivalents.

The above-described embodiments of the present disclosure can beimplemented in hardware, firmware or via the execution of software orcomputer code that can be stored in a recording medium such as a CD ROM,a Digital Versatile Disc (DVD), a magnetic tape, a RAM, a floppy disk, ahard disk, or a magneto-optical disk or computer code downloaded over anetwork originally stored on a remote recording medium or anon-transitory machine readable medium and to be stored on a localrecording medium, so that the methods described herein can be renderedvia such software that is stored on the recording medium using a generalpurpose computer, or a special processor or in programmable or dedicatedhardware, such as an ASIC or FPGA. As would be understood in the art,the computer, the processor, microprocessor controller or theprogrammable hardware include memory components, e.g., RAM, ROM, Flash,etc. that may store or receive software or computer code that whenaccessed and executed by the computer, processor or hardware implementthe processing methods described herein.

What is claimed is:
 1. An electronic device comprising: a display; acharging circuit configured to transmit and receive power to and from anexternal electronic device; a sensor circuit, including a gyro sensor,configured to detect whether the electronic device is facing away from asurface of an external object such that the display is visible to a useror facing toward the surface such that the display is obscured from theuser by the surface of the external object; and a processor electricallyconnected with the display, the charging circuit, and the sensorcircuit, wherein, when wirelessly transmitting or receiving power to orfrom the external electronic device using the charging circuit, theprocessor is configured to: receive information associated with thewireless transmission of power to the external electronic device orwireless reception of power from the external electronic device;determine whether a front surface containing the display faces a topside or a bottom side opposite to the top side by using the gyro sensor;determine the electronic device is detected to be facing away from thesurface of the external object when the gyro sensor satisfies a specificcondition; and display a user interface according to the informationassociated with the wireless transmission of power to the externalelectronic device or wireless reception of power from the externalelectronic device when the gyro sensor satisfies the specific condition.2. The electronic device of claim 1, wherein the information includes atleast one of a battery level of the electronic device, an amount ofpower consumed by the electronic device, a temperature of the electronicdevice, when the wireless transmission or reception of power started, anestimated time for completing the wireless transmission or reception ofpower, a charging current of the electronic device, and time elapsedsince a start of the wireless transmission or reception of power.
 3. Theelectronic device of claim 1, wherein the displayed user interfaceincludes information generated by the electronic device and informationreceived from the external electronic device.
 4. The electronic deviceof claim 1, wherein a first frequency used to wirelessly transmit orreceive power is different from a second frequency used to transmit andreceive the information.
 5. The electronic device of claim 1, whereinthe processor is further configured to not display the user interface ifthe electronic device is detected to be facing toward the surface. 6.The electronic device of claim 1, wherein, if the electronic devicetransmits power to the external electronic device, the processor isfurther configured to execute only a pre-defined application.
 7. Theelectronic device of claim 1, wherein, if the electronic devicetransmits power to the external electronic device, the processor isfurther configured to enter a low-power mode to execute only one or morepre-defined functions.
 8. The electronic device of claim 1, wherein, ifthe electronic device transmits power to the external electronic device,the processor is further configured to display, in the display, a firstuser interface displaying at least one of a current power capacity ofthe electronic device, a target capacity remaining after the wirelesstransmission of power is completed, a progress indicator, and anestimated time remaining for the wireless transmission of power.
 9. Theelectronic device of claim 1, wherein, if the electronic device receivespower from the external electronic device, the processor is furtherconfigured to display, in the display, a second user interfacedisplaying at least one of a current power capacity of the externalelectronic device, a target capacity remaining after the wirelesstransmission of power is completed, and an estimated time remaining forthe wireless transmission of power.
 10. The electronic device of claim9, wherein the processor is further configured to adjust the targetcapacity based on an input from the user.
 11. A control method of anelectronic device including a display, the method comprising: wirelesslytransmitting or receiving power to or from an external electronicdevice; detecting whether the electronic device is facing away from asurface of an external object such that the display is visible to a useror facing toward the surface such that the display is obscured from theuser by the surface of the external object by using a gyro sensor;receiving information associated with the wireless transmission of powerto the external electronic device or wireless reception of power fromthe external electronic device; and determining the electronic device isdetected to be facing away from the surface of the external object whenthe gyro sensor satisfies a specific condition; and displaying a userinterface according to the information associated with the wirelesstransmission of power to the external electronic device or wirelessreception of power from the external electronic device when the gyrosensor satisfies the specific condition.
 12. The method of claim 11,wherein the information includes at least one of a battery level of theelectronic device, an amount of power consumed by the electronic device,a temperature of the electronic device, when the wireless transmissionor reception of power started, an estimated time for completing thewireless transmission or reception of power, a charging current of theelectronic device, and time elapsed since a start of the wirelesstransmission or reception of power.
 13. The method of claim 11, whereinthe displayed user interface includes information generated by theelectronic device and information received from the external electronicdevice.
 14. The method of claim 11, wherein the method includes: notdisplaying the user interface if the electronic device is detected to befacing toward the surface.
 15. The method of claim 11, wherein, if theelectronic device transmits power to the external electronic device, themethod further comprises: executing only a pre-defined application. 16.The method of claim 11, wherein, if the electronic device transmitspower to the external electronic device, the method further comprises:entering a low-power mode to execute only one or more pre-definedfunctions.
 17. The method of claim 11, wherein, if the electronic devicetransmits power to the external electronic device, the method furthercomprises: displaying, in the display, a first user interface displayingat least one of a current power capacity of the electronic device, atarget capacity remaining after the wireless transmission of power iscompleted, a progress indicator, and an estimated time remaining for thewireless transmission of power.
 18. The method of claim 11, wherein, ifthe electronic device receives power from the external electronicdevice, the method further comprises: displaying, in the display, asecond user interface displaying at least one of a current powercapacity of the external electronic device, a target capacity remainingafter the wireless transmission of power is completed, and an estimatedtime remaining for the wireless transmission of power.
 19. The method ofclaim 18, wherein the method includes: adjusting the target capacitybased on an input from the user.
 20. A recording medium storinginstructions for an electronic device including a display, theinstructions, when executed by a processor of the electronic device,perform a method of: wirelessly transmitting or receiving power to orfrom an external electronic device; detecting whether the electronicdevice is facing away from a surface of an external object such that thedisplay is visible to a user or facing toward the surface such that thedisplay is obscured from the user by the surface of the external objectby using a gyro sensor; receiving information associated with thewireless transmission of power to the external electronic device orwireless reception of power from the external electronic device; anddetermining the electronic device is detected to be facing away from thesurface of the external object when the gyro sensor satisfies a specificcondition; and displaying a user interface according to the informationassociated with the wireless transmission of power to the externalelectronic device or wireless reception of power from the externalelectronic device when the gyro sensor satisfies the specific condition.